


The Curious One

by sngsngsnyrslp



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/M, Friendship to Lovers, Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-27
Updated: 2014-07-23
Packaged: 2018-01-13 22:59:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1243741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sngsngsnyrslp/pseuds/sngsngsnyrslp
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>All it took was one week for Mako to move on. Bolin deals with the collateral damage. Borra.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

            It took him quite a long time to find her. He searched everywhere, until he finally slipped past the temple before he catching a glimpse of blue in his peripherals. And then there was no question as to where else he could have found his best friend.

            She wasn’t exactly the same Korra that had left crying and heartbroken one week ago. Not everyone could see the subtle differences in her, or at least he figured no one cared enough to notice as much as he did. No one watched her the same way he did. They didn’t notice the gentle tone she spoke to her mentor’s children with or the way she paused, pursing her lips and taking a moment to think before speaking. He didn’t know what had happened during the week she had left, but his brutish aggressive girl was gone. And an even more beautiful mature woman was left in her wake.

            And all it took was a single week.

            Bolin leaned against the doorway, watching the Avatar meditate. He would have never described the old Korra as calm before, but that’s exactly what she looked like to him. Gone was the girl whose forehead was constantly wrinkled in anger. Her hands, which had always been clenched in fists, gently lay on her knees.

            The earthbender could stare at her all day and never get his fill. There was always one detail he happened to overlook each time.            

            His heart warmed as her bright blue eyes opened and he watched the way they focused in on him. He grinned back at her. “There’s a pro-bending match on in a few hours. Want to get lunch and head over to my place for a listen?”

            There was a moment right before she answered Bolin’s question when all she could see staring back at her was Mako and felt the immediate stabbing pain that accompanied any mention of him. She saw all of their shared traits at once; so many bombarded her that she failed to see the cheery earthbender standing in front of her. His hands came up to their shared inky black hair and she recalled running her fingers through a similar head of thick hair, and trailing her fingers down pale skin, tracing the visible veins that lye underneath. There was no mistaking that the two were cut from the same cloth.

            It only took a few blinks of her eyes before she sees Bolin again, notices that where his older brother’s visage is all sharp angles, Bolin’s has gentle curves and the brightest eyes she’s ever seen. Her eyes moved over his heavily corded arms that gave the best hugs in all the Four Nations and never failed to reassure her that she would always have one ally on Team Avatar.

            She stood up, wiping off her pants. “Ready?”

            He nodded, sending her that grin that transformed his entire face, each of his features lighting up.

            It was almost impossible not to smile when that face was beaming back at you.

            xxx

            The pro-bending match was eventful, and Korra watched as Bolin’s ear stayed trained to the small radio, his body prepared to spring up in delight or defeat, depending on the results of the tiebreaker.

            His broad shoulders tensed under her stare, his eyes finding hers. “What? Are there noodles in my hair?” The edge of his lips lifted with the question, a reminder of the last time they listened to a pro-bending match and the earthbender jumped up, sending his bowl of noodles toward the ceiling before gravity sent them atop his head. He’d never heard Korra laugh so hard, her laughter coming from the depths of her stomach. Despite his embarrassment, seeing her doubled over figure made him laugh right along with her.

            Korra shook her head, chuckling lightly at the memory.

            The Avatar noticed the edges of his mouth tip downward, his hand stretching out toward the radio to silence the match. “You’re not even listening, are you?”

            She was stuck between answering truthfully and lying, but looking into Bolin’s eyes proved that there was no other possibility than telling the truth. He was too easy going, too trusting; his green eyes just seemed to bore into her soul. There was no way she could lie to Bolin without feeling the weight of it within seconds.

            “Sorry, I’ve got a lot on my mind.”

            He sighed, shifting his body on the couch, his torso turning to face her, his arm on the back of the couch behind her head. “Yeah, I know Avatar stuff right?” His eyes looked hopeful, he could only hope that her job was helping push any thoughts of his dumb brother to the back of her mind, but the look in her eyes squashed any hopes of that possibility.

It was no wonder why the Avatar had taken to meditating during her down time. There was no better way to avoid dwelling on her ex-boyfriend than to quiet her thoughts altogether.

            Korra toyed with the idea of lying to him, but even the thought was too heavy a weight for her to handle at the moment. “Don’t make me say it.”

            For all of the changes Korra had undergone, he could still see the anger, the fire burning in her eyes because after all the hottest fires didn’t burn red or orange or even yellow, they burned blue. Instead, she suppressed her feelings, in favor of becoming the Avatar the world needed, one to take on the weight of the world. But Bolin knew that Korra needed someone to take just a few pounds of that weight from her shoulders, at least for a few minutes.

            “You don’t have to pretend.”

            She avoided his gaze, focusing on the carpet at her feet instead.

            “Korra,” he started, tipping her chin to meet his eyes, “You don’t have to pretend with me. It’s okay to be angry.”

            The brunette shook her head, bringing one hand up to her mouth. “I don’t want to be that girl anymore. I don’t want to prove him right. I can’t-” She stopped, taking deep breaths in a sad attempt to stifle her quickening breaths. If she was angry, if she raged at Mako, she’d only be showing him that he was right in breaking up with her and finding solace in Asami’s arms.

            The earthbender wrapped his arm around her, pulling her into his chest. He breathed in her scent. He’d never smelled anything exactly like it until he met Korra. Where Asami’s scent was artificially sweet, like burnt sugar and dried flowers, Korra’s was natural and no matter how hard he tried he never could find the right words to describe it. It was a fresh breeze on a brisk, winter day, the birds chirping in the dawn. It was simply Korra because she was one of a kind and there was no one else like her.

            He was furious with his brother. One week. Only seven days passed before his brother was over Korra. Bolin had spent months watching his brother with Korra, pushing his feelings away. He had gracefully bowed out, wishing his brother and Korra all the happiness in the world. And for what? For him to get over her in seven days? It was complete and utter bullshit. Bolin had never been a particularly angry person, the emotion just didn’t sit well with him, but feeling Korra’s tears seep through both his shirt and undershirt sent him into a frenzy. His jaw clenched and he tightened his hold on Korra.

            The Avatar looked up, her watery blue eyes finding his. “I just-I just feel so replaceable.”

            Bolin shushed her, pressing his lips to the crown of her head. Korra was amazing and beautiful and he’d be damned if anyone, including his own brother, got away with making her doubt herself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako and Bolin barely survive a tense dinner.

            It was easy to avoid his brother now that they weren’t sharing the same cramped apartment. The thought was inconceivable before. The shared the same bathroom made sure of that, shaving over the same sink, elbows hitting each other’s. It was impossible to not just hash out all of the problems bubbling beneath the surface whatever they might be. Even when they were too busy to speak to each other, just brushing their teeth beside each other was enough reassurance that everything was okay between the two, and that things would eventually smooth themselves over because they were roommates. But they no longer passed each other in the hallway or made note of the evidence proving that the other brother had been home even if only to change clothes.

            For that reason, Mako extended an invitation to his younger brother for dinner at Narook’s, Bolin’s favorite restaurant.

            Bolin’s first reaction was to decline the invitation. The mere thought of his older brother was enough to make the earthbender’s sight go crimson, but he was family and the memories of his deceased parents forced him to accept. They were brothers after all.

            Conversation between the two brothers was forced. The firebender tried his best to get his younger brother to talk, pulling out any and every topic Bolin favored and had spoken extensively on in the past, but to no avail. He wasn’t taking the bait. Every response Mako received was terse. His brother had always been verbose, talking his ear off since they were children, but he barely spoke a sentence during dinner, keeping his responses as short as possible.

            Bolin looked around the restaurant, looking toward the table he had dinner with Korra, during a time he thought he still had a chance. Before his brother had swooped in, jealous and possessive, like a thief in the night, stealing Korra from behind his back. The memory made him cringe, leaving a bad taste in his mouth that effectively ruined any prospect of finishing this poor excuse for a dinner.

            “Well I’ve got to go,” Bolin announced, dropping the sufficient amount of yuans for his part of the meal.

            Mako frowned. He had explicitly told him that he was paying for the meal. The snub was blatant.

            The firebender stood, dropping enough for the entire meal on the table, grabbing the bills Bolin left on his way out. There was no way his little brother was going to pay and he was definitely not going to just leave like that.

            The earthbender was down the street, his hands stuffed into his pockets, his shoulders tense. He had taken the long way home, in desperate need of fresh air. His fists were clenched in his pockets. Just the sound of his brother’s voice had irritated him.

            Mako grabbed his shoulder, “Hey, I said I’d pay.”

            Bolin immediately shrugged off his older brother’s hand; his touch burned through his layers and only seemed to exasperate him. It would lead his mind down a bad path, one he might not be able to come back from.

            The firebender’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “What’s your problem?”

            “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m fine.”

            “Yes you do! You barely talked to me. We haven’t seen each other in weeks, you should have more to say to your older brother.” And he did. He had so many words floating around in his mind, so many combinations of letters curled on the tip of his tongue, just waiting for the moment when Bolin would stop holding his tongue, releasing the slew of negative thoughts he had toward his brother.

             “I don’t have anything to say to you,” he muttered, avoiding his brother’s gaze. If you didn’t have anything nice to say then you shouldn’t say anything at all.

            “Is this about Korra? What lies has she been telling you about me?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “You’re my brother and you’re just letting Korra get between us. That’s pretty messed up, bro.”

            Bolin took a deep breath, attempting to soothe the raging inferno spreading throughout his entire body. It was the way he said her name, like a curse word, spat it really, like it tasted foul on his tongue. His brother’s response forced the hands at his sides into fists; the skin covering his knuckles stretched white. Bolin’s eyes took in his brother’s athletic figure, moving upward until he found his face, taking note of the angular features. It was no wonder his brother had always played the villain during their childhood games.  

            The fury coursing through his veins didn’t sit well with him, anger wasn’t an emotion Bolin was accustomed to feeling, but the disgust rolling off of Mako’s tongue as he spoke Korra’s name shifted his lips into a snarl and the image of the Avatar crying into his shirt brought his right fist upward striking against his brother’s face.

            He could still feel her tears seeping through his shirts and the sobs that shook her chest.

            The thoughts almost sent his left fist into his brother’s chin.

            “What the fuck, Bolin?” Mako groaned, his hand coming up to touch the sensitive skin surrounding his soon-to-be swollen eye.

             His entire body shook with adrenaline. “You,” He growled, “You don’t say her name. Ever.”

            It took Mako a moment to process what had happened. His happy-go-lucky brother, who could rarely be seen without a grin stretched across his rounded face, had punched him in the eye. The firebender couldn’t remember the last time they had engaged in physical violence. Training was an entirely different story, of course someone sometimes ended up a bit bruised, but Mako didn’t think they had ever hit each other even in their youth.

            This was different. Bolin wasn’t in his earthbending stance. This wasn’t friendly fire or training.

            The earthbender’s hands were still folded into fists, preparing for his older brother’s retaliation.

            His older brother’s fist hit him at the edge of his mouth, tearing the skin on the inside of his mouth as well as busting open his lip. Bolin spit, taking note of the soreness in his mouth and the splatter of crimson on the sidewalk.

            “I don’t want to fight you, Bolin.”

            Bolin wiped his mouth. “The worst part is that you think you’re right. You always think you’re right, but this time you couldn’t be more wrong. I didn’t say anything when you took her the first time. I stepped aside and accepted that maybe you could be good for her, and maybe you could love her like I do. And then you pull a stunt like this? You don’t even see her, not like I do, and definitely not like she deserves to be seen. She’s so beautiful. And there’s no one else in the world like her, not because she’s the Avatar, but because she’s Korra.” He took a deep breath, his hands dropping at his sides.“You don’t get that. You never did.”

            He dropped his hands, bringing the fists into his pockets. He gave his brother a final look, challenging him to speak out against the girl. When his brother finally met his gaze, his body leaning against a building, and gave no indication that he was going to speak ill of the Avatar, he walked toward his apartment.

            There was a beautiful unique girl waiting for him when he got home.  


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Korra sees the evidence of Bolin and Mako's altercation.

The lights were lit in his apartment. Usually this would have alerted him to an intruder, set him on edge, knowing someone had invaded the only space that had ever been his and his alone, but he knew who he’d find lounging on his couch, or spirits forbid searching through his things. There were a few unsent love letters in his bedroom addressed to the smartest, funniest, toughest, buffest, talentedest, incrediblest girl in the world that he preferred stayed unset and unread.

            But she’d probably be asleep. Darkness had already fallen over Republic City, the moonlight casting long dark shadows. Bolin had watched the sunset as he circled the block, his mind reeling and his knuckles bruised. He could just imagine the verbal lashing he’d get when Korra saw his split lip. After completing his seventh trip around the block he paused in front of his home. The plan had been that after the first few blocks he’d have summoned the courage to enter his apartment and face the wrath of the Avatar. It hadn’t exactly worked out that way.

            With a sigh, he entered his apartment, walking up the three flights of stairs until he reached his apartment. He took another deep breath before entering.

            Korra was asleep as he suspected, her long hair fanned across the pillow she must have grabbed from his bedroom. His heart immediately warmed at the sight. The times he had seen Korra’s hair out of its traditional wolf-tails had come few and far between. He could count the times on just one hand.

            He dropped his keys on the kitchen table, his eyes drifting to the sleeping girl on his couch. A blanket from his closet was covering her. The earthbender took a moment to study her face, his chartreuse eyes sweeping over her features. His eyes followed the tracks of dried tears down her cheeks. It made him wish he had punched his brother just once more, to make him hurt as much as he had hurt Korra. Bolin took a seat on the floor beside the couch, his side pressed against the arm of the sofa, his eyes sweeping over her serene face. The edge of his mouth lifted. She was really breathtaking. These were the moments Bolin lived for, when her guard receded, the vulnerability in her features evident.

            Her eyebrows furrowed in her sleep, her mouth suddenly twisting along with them. He could only imagine what upsetting story was playing behind her eyelids. She had been through a lot in the past few weeks, more than most people underwent in their entire lifetime.

            Bolin frowned, his hand lifting to her face. He ran his thumb between her eyebrows, smoothing out the creased skin. Her mouth opened, and he could just imagine the scolding he’d get for trying to calm Korra down when she was all riled up. The thought brought a smile to his face, as well as the fact that the sleeping girl’s face had returned to its previously peaceful state. He leaned forward, his lips brushing against her forehead before sliding down onto the floor, leaning his head back onto her lap. He took a few moments to quiet his screaming mind.

            The apartment was quiet, even Pabu was silent, having fallen asleep on Korra’s stomach. His stomach growled, breaking the silence and forcing the earthbender to stand from his comfortable seat on the floor. He made his way to the kitchen for a quick snack. He’d barely eaten his plate at Narook’s despite the savory smell of the food wafting up his nostrils the entire meal. He couldn’t think of eating, metaphorically breaking bread with his brother when the collateral damage of his selfish, thoughtless actions was spending most of her free time in his apartment when not at the air temple training and meditating.

            He gripped the edges of the counter, his knuckles a pale white. This was his brother for crying out loud. He shouldn’t be so hostile toward the person who had practically raised him, but he couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t let it go. Everything had just happened so quickly. It was too much for him as a spectator; he could only imagine the feelings rushing through Korra as an active participant. Not to mention that she had a lot more on her plate than the rest of them without the unnecessary addition of teenage drama.

            “What’s got you so worked up?” A drowsy voice murmured behind him.

            He turned to face the awoken Avatar, releasing his grip on the countertop. Korra was wiping the sleep from her eyes with the backs of her hands, the edge of her shirt inching up to reveal a smooth sliver of tan skin. His eyes stayed, following the horizontal line to the edge of her hip where he knew she bore a new scar, courtesy of an angry evil spirit who had previously been her uncle.

            “Who’s worked up? I know it’s definitely not this guy.” He smiled, but winced immediately, too taken by the sight of the girl in front of him to remember that he should have been hiding his busted lip in the shadows, or at least preparing for the verbal whiplash he was about to endure.

            At the sight of Bolin in pain, the Avatar stepped forward, bringing her hand up to his mouth to examine where she suspected the damage was done.

            “What happened here? Did you get fresh with Ginger?” She chuckled to herself, leaving an affectionate smile playing on her lips. “I always knew that girl had it in her.”

            He shook his head, forcing himself to only smile with the uninjured side of his mouth.  “No, nothing like that.”

            The Avatar’s hand immediately dropped and her face contorted in anger. “You didn’t, Bolin. Tell me that you didn’t.”

            Bolin could see the disappointment in her eyes even if she would only voice her anger and outrage at his actions. “He just really ticked me off.”

            She shook her head, turning away in mid-stride out of the kitchen before Bolin moved, grabbing her by the bicep and wrapping his free arm around her torso. The tip of his pinky was curved around her waist, sliding across the exposed skin at her hips.

            Her body immediately tensed, stilling at the feel of his chest pressed against her back. His breath was hot against the back of her neck and for a moment she wondered who was the firebender in the family.

            Korra never ceased being surprised by how quick Bolin was on his feet despite his hulking physique. She had barely taken a step before she found herself in his grasp.

But His body encircling hers didn’t take away from the fact that she was so frustrated by his actions. She didn’t need him getting in the middle of things, especially when the other participant was his older brother, the only family he had.

            Her thoughts slowed to a crawl and momentarily Korra marveled at the way Bolin held her against him. He was one of the only people who’d ever held her like she was something precious. His body just barely touched hers, and yet she felt the heat radiating from every inch of his skin. “You didn’t have to do that, Bo. I didn’t want you to. This has nothing to do with you. It’s between me and Mako.”

            Bolin sighed, the exhale sending a shiver down Korra’s spine. “That’s the thing though. You don’t expect it, when you should. I’ll always be on your side. Team Korra, right?”

            She took a deep breath, fighting the lifting edges of her mouth. No matter how hard she tried to be upset with Bolin, he always made it impossible. “It’s Team Avatar.”

            He grinned and even though she couldn’t see him she could hear it in his voice. “I’m partial to Team Korra.”

            With a laugh, Korra broke from his hold, turning around. “I guess I could heal you. I don’t think the public would appreciate a Nuktuk with a busted lip.”

            He shook his head. “No, I have to look my best now that I’m a gorgeous world famous actor.”

            She elbowed him in the ribs. “Don’t push your luck, Nuktuk.”

           


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako confronts Korra.

            Korra was exhausted, her entire body still ached from her battle with the merged Vaatu and Unalaq; her mind was reeling, thoughts constantly bombarding her every moment of the day. It was the reason why she was leaning on her steadier relationships, with the people who were reliable and drama-free, the ones she rarely got angry with, besides Bolin the other night. There was no doubt in her mind that they would have her back and be there to support her in her time of need.

            She’d been staying at Air Temple Island, when she wasn’t crashing at Bolin’s, focused on helping Pema with Rohan. He was so beautiful and she didn’t mind taking care of him and giving Pema a break. It was much easier than defeating her uncle and an ancient dark spirit.

            Rohan was simple. He needed her affection, to be held, to be fed, to be changed and to sleep. Simple. Easy breezy. It was a great way to focus her attention on one single being, just like meditating, it took her mind off of things.

            Korra had been too busy cooing at the baby when Mako cleared his throat behind her. She whirled around, her eyes wide and taking him in. Her first instinct was to flee the situation, but naturally he was standing in front of the only way out. It was obvious to her that he had planned it that way to ensure that they got the chance to talk.

            “We need to talk.”

            It was so like Mako, to demand her attention and that they talk even if she wasn’t ready for it just yet. The sight of him alone got her heart beating rapidly, and not in the beautiful way it had before. Now it was thumping against her ribcage, attempting to escape and get as far away from the man in front of her.

            She cradled Rohan to her chest, rubbing his back, a burping cloth on her shoulder to shield her clothing from the inevitable spit-up.

            Mako’s eyes moved over the baby in her arms and she could feel his eyes burning into her skin. She avoided his gaze at all costs, focusing on Rohan intead.

            He sighed before starting, “So I can assume that you’re just not going to look at me, I guess.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything different.”

            A murmur of thanks passed between herself and the still baby in her arms. He was the only thing keeping her from taking out all of frustration and pent-up aggression on him. Mako was coming at Korra in the completely wrong way, which wasn’t such a surprise since that was the entirety of their relationship.

             He watched her, waiting for her to finally look up. He would stand there all day if he had to; he just needed those blue orbs to finally look into his.

            It finally worked, the tired Avatar, finding his eyes. “You wanted to talk, so talk.”

            “Bolin’s not talking to me.”

            Korra blinked slowly, taking deep breaths. “And?”

            “Well I wanted to know if that had anything to do with you.’

            The Avatar scoffed. “Shouldn’t you be talking to Bolin about this?”

            “I would gladly talk to my brother if he would talk back to me. He can hardly stand to look at me,” and in a smaller voice he added, “he’s not the only one.”

            She shifted Rohan in her arms, so now he was staring up at her, his big green eyes reminding her of another set that had been appearing in her mind more and more often. They were just as calming as Bolin’s. She looked up, looking at him without really seeing him. “What are you telling me this for? This is really something you should talk to Bolin about.”

            He growled at her calm and steady demeanor. Where was the heated and passionate girl he knew? That was a girl he could talk to. This girl was impossible to talk to when she was just so _calm._ It was irritating. “Since you’re not going to own up to it, I’ll just say it. Stop talking about me to my brother. You’ve got your claws in him and you’ve turned him against me.”

            She laughed, taking a glance at the baby like he was in on the joke. “I don’t have my claws in Bolin. Your brother has formed his own opinions on the situation before I said anything.”

            “So you admit it, you were talking shit about me to Bolin?”

            “You’re twisting my words.” She sighed, shaking her head. “There’s no talking to you when you’re like this.”

            “When I’m like what, Korra?”

            She gave him a look, looking down at the baby in her arms before continuing. “You just want to blame me because Bolin is upset with you, but I’m not the one to blame and I’m not the one you need to be talking to. Now, if you want to apologize to me then I’m all ears, Mako, but that obviously wasn’t your intent-“

            “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt you two,” Bolin grunted out, dropping the take-out bag of Narook’s on the table, murmuring that he’d be visiting the flying bison on his way out.

            Korra struggled with the overcoming amount of frustration she was feeling. It was the night of the semi-finals all over again. She just couldn’t win and this time she wasn’t even doing anything wrong.

            “Leave,” she growled, stepping out to follow after the hurt earthbender. She didn’t wait to hear Mako’s response.

            With Rohan in her arms she couldn’t exactly run, so she walked as quickly as her legs would carry her.

            She saw the hurt in his green eyes as he looked over the situation; her and his brother having what to him probably looked like a civil conversation. It probably looked like they were getting back together, or at least on their way.

            Bolin had his back to her, his arms reaching as high as he could short of standing on his tippy toes to scratch the edge of Oogi’s jaw.

            “You know I just don’t understand you guys.”

            Korra bit her lip. “Who?”

            “You and Asami. I love my brother, and this may make me sound like a complete dick, but he’s not worth it. He can’t decide between you and it’s almost a year later.” He sighed, running his hand through his hair, effectively mussing his curls. “I knew from the moment I saw you that you were something special. _Korra_ not _Avatar_ Korra. I just felt it and not just because you are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen, but because you just-you radiate, Korra.” He smiled at her, but she could tell that his heart wasn’t in it. “I just want to say that I adore you. You take care of everyone in both the spirit and mortal world, but I-I just want to take care of you. I want to be your rock, and I’m not just saying that because I’m an earthbender.”

            She smiled at his bad pun.

            He moved to walk past her, but stopped, squeezing her shoulder for a moment before he pressed a kiss to her cheek and running his hands over Rohan’s dark hair before saying, “If you need time then I’ve got all the time in the world, Korra. All you have to do is say so.”

            Her breath was stuck in her throat and it wasn’t until he was long gone that she could finally talk, murmuring a ‘yes’ underneath her breath. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bolin gets asked a very important question about his and Korra's future.

Bolin shot up from his spot on the couch; he had dozed off while listening to music on the radio, awoken by someone knocking furiously at the door. Fists came up to rub the sleep away from his eyes as he opened the door.

            “Were you sleeping?” A sheepish avatar asked.

            Bolin shook his head, sliding aside to allow Korra to slip into the apartment, the edge of her shoulder brushing across his chest. It was quite a surprise to see her in his apartment after the weeks they had spent apart. It had only been two, but it had felt so long since he had looked into her blue eyes. He had opened up to her, saying out loud what he knew she already knew and now the decision was up to her whether or not she wanted to take a step, now matter how big or small, in that direction. It wasn’t the size of the step that mattered to the earthbender just what direction she took it in.

            “I was just taking a bit of a nap,” he ran a hand through his bed-head. “What are you doing here?”

            Korra turned around, nervously wringing the edge of her pelt in her hands. “I’m not good at this,” she began and immediately Bolin’s stomach twisted. The first time he had been rejected by Korra had hurt, watching the one you loved kiss another was torture, the fact that it was his brother (who in-fact already had a girlfriend) only seemed to drive the knife in deeper. But this somehow found a way to hurt even worse, the metaphorical knife twisting as it cut deep into his stomach. He had really thought that things could be different for them, that he could be the one to make her happy for the rest of their lives. Maybe it was simply a naïve fantasy.

            “No,” she began, waving her hands in front of him, her eyes wide with fear and then she was grabbing him by the lapels like she had the first day she had met him and she had pulled him toward her, his body flush to hers and her lips pressed against his to attempt and remedy her mistake. He could feel every curve of her figure against his in a way that he had never had the chance to in their brief embraces. For a few moments his body had frozen, his lips motionless against hers and his arms lying limply at his sides. Korra didn’t seem to mind, continuing to move her lips against his, her tongue sweeping across his lips.

            Her wet tongue sliding across the seam of his lips put him back into motion and his hands found their way to her waist, his lips moving along with hers. He felt himself being pushed backward onto the couch, Korra straddling him. She released the fabric of his lapels and one hand found its way up to his face, her thumb gently running over his cheekbone while the other struggled with unbuttoning his shirt.

            Bolin’s breathing was coming out in pants and he forced himself to pull away from Korra’s lips, pressing his forehead against her collarbones as he attempted to catch his breath. He was trying (and failing) to suppress his arousal and while the beautiful woman hovering above him didn’t seem to notice (or simply didn’t mind), Bolin couldn’t fight the flush heating his cheeks.

            Korra leaned back into him, capturing his bottom lip between hers, her teeth scraping against the sensitive skin. Bolin groaned grabbing onto the fleshy parts of her thighs. She was not making this easy on him, but that was one of the things that had drawn him to her. She wasn’t simple. She was complex and beautiful and she was definitely making things hard for him, pun intended.

            She pulled away from him, running her hands through his hair. Bolin took the initiative to kiss her first, sweeping kisses down her neck, his tongue sliding across her collarbone. A moan vibrated into the sensitive skin. Did everyone taste this good? The tips of his hair moved as she gasped out his name.

            Everything was good. Everything felt so good and things finally seemed to be moving in the right direction for him. This was where Korra belonged, with him, with his name falling from her lips, her lips bruised from kissing him and her hair falling out of her wolftails. “Bolin,” she whispered, pressing her forehead against his. “I’m ready for you,” her eyes moved over to the open door of his bedroom, her hips grinding into his erection. Bolin lifted her into his arms, practically running into his bedroom until someone began pounding on the door.

            The earthbender shot up from his spot on his bed. He blinked at the darkness, blinking to adjust to the lack of light. He reached toward the other side of the bed, his hand sliding over cool sheets. It was a dream. Korra hadn’t found her way to his home in the middle of the night.

            The knocking on the door continued and Bolin crawled out of bed, adjusting himself before moving to see who was knocking so persistently.

            Turquoise eyes shone back at him, her hand in a fist, a few inches away from pounding against his face. She immediately dropped the offending fist, murmuring an apology underneath her breath. In an attempt to demonstrate that she would not be damaging his face or the front door to his apartment, she linked her fingers behind her back, absent-mindedly arching her chest toward him. It wasn’t as if Bolin wouldn’t have been phased if this had been any other time, because he always took note of the sloping curves that made up her body, but after that dream, seeing the chest that had had been pressed up against his own made him blush heavily, his cheeks on fire.

            Bolin moved aside to allow her into the apartment, shivering as the edge of her shoulder swiped past his chest. Maybe his dream had been a premonition.

            He narrowed his eyes at the thought, the likelihood that his dream had been a premonition was very small, but he would keep an eye out. But that probably meant he would have to say exactly what he had said in the dream to make it real.

            “I was just taking a bit of a nap,” he started and ran a hand through his bed-head. He had done that in the dream right? “What are you doing here?”

            Her eyes swept over the apartment, making a mental inventory to make sure nothing had changed in the last two weeks since they had seen each other. Most of her time had been spent thinking, about her future, about the future of the four nations and how Bolin fit into any of that.

            “I’m not good at this.”

            Bolin’s heart stopped. Maybe his dream had been a premonition. Stranger things had happened.

            She took a step toward him, before shaking her head, chuckling to herself at her foolishness. “Let me re-start that,” her tongue darted out, swiping across her bottom lip. “Do you want to go visit my parents with me?” She ran a hand through her bangs. “I know you already visited the Southern Water Tribe so if you’re sick of it just let me know, but I was just thinking since y’know a lot of things got in the way from you really getting the Southern Water Tribe experience. We’d be staying with my parents for a week or so,” her eyes stayed trained on the floor, her eyes bouncing up to meet his “And then if you wanted to I think it’d be cool for you to accompany me across the four nations.” She took a deep breath, her eyes meeting his wide, surprised ones. “Spirits, you’re probably freaked out now. That was a lot wasn’t it?”

            Bolin nodded, turning away from her digesting the words that had tumbled out of her mouth and what they exactly meant in terms of relationship. He turned back toward her, his mouth twisting and his hand coming up to rub at his jaw. “Alright, so you want me to go with you to visit the Southern Water Tribe before you go on a trip around the world?”

            Korra shrugged bashfully. “That’s pretty much it. Oh! But we have to be leaving by tomorrow night, so if that’s a problem then...”

            He turned back toward her, his eyes widening even further. Spirits, the girl could’ve given him a bit of him to think it over. He assumed they would be gone for a few months and this was an all-expense trip around the four nations with the girl he had been pining over for months and while she probably wouldn’t be hopping into his bed like in his dream (he had realized the turn of events meant his dream had not been in fact a premonition).

            “How long would we be gone?”

            She kicked at the floor, her eyes not quite meeting his again. “Well that all depends on the spiritual condition of each of the nations, so indefinitely, but you wouldn’t have to worry about clothes or food that’s all going to be covered by the trip.”

            He rubbed at his jaw, pretending to mull it over. He didn’t want to seem overeager; he had to be cool. He took a few more seconds to pretend he was thinking it over before allowing a grin to spread across his face.

            “An all expense paid trip all over the world? I think I’d be a fool to turn that down.”

            Korra jumped into his arms, pulling away, but keeping her hands on his shoulders. “This is going to be so much fun.” He couldn’t help but grin back at her, his smile mirroring hers. He paused for a moment and Korra immediately backed away, “What’s wrong?”

            “I have to get my keys to Mako so he can pick up my mail and make sure thieves know they can’t have all my stuff.”

            “Well you’re probably going to have to wait until tomorrow.”

            “Yeah, I doubt he’d want me to wake him up so late. Some of us are polite enough to know better than to wake people up in the middle of the night.” Bolin gave her a pointed stare.

            Korra grinned sheepishly, her cheeks coloring. “I needed to get up the nerves.”

            “So I make you nervous?” He elbowed her in the ribs, a sly smile sliding across his features.

            The blushing avatar turned away from him, pushing his shoulder while muttering for him to be quiet. He wanted to press her further, but realized that it must have taken a lot for her to ask him travel the world with her, especially after their heated exchange a few weeks ago. The next step in their relationship was all up to her, and Bolin was glad this was the route she had chosen.

            xxx

            “I was wondering when and if I’d ever see you again,” Mako muttered, allowing his little brother into his apartment. He was still in his pajamas and Bolin was thankful he had caught him on his day off.

            Bolin nervously scratched the back of his neck, “Yeah, well I kind of have a favor to ask you.” The firebender scowled, but asked his brother to continue while he took sips of his morning tea. “I need you to periodically check up on my apartment while I’m out of town.”

            Mako smiled, “Another mover? With Varrick out of commission I thought those would be put to a stop.”

            “No, that’s not exactly where I’m headed to.”

            The scowl returned. “Traveling the world with Avatar Korra?”

            Bolin nodded, sliding the key to his apartment across the table. “I don’t know how long I’m going to be gone, so if you could just pick up my mail and maybe,” he murmured “pay my bills” underneath his breath.

            “Pay your bills? I can’t afford that Bolin!”

            The younger brother shook his head, sliding his checkbook across the table. “No you just have to pay my bills with my money. I’ve got enough.” Truth be told, he had more than enough money. The movers had paid more than he knew what to do with, so most of it had found its way into several checking and savings accounts.

            “So,” he started, taking another sip of his tea. Bolin could tell that his brother wanted to mention Korra, wanted to ask how he was the one she had asked to accompany across the four nations, but didn’t know how to ask without starting an argument. He had obviously remembered Bolin’s warning to never speak her name again.

            “I don’t want to leave being mad at you. You’re my brother.”

            Mako’s eyes found his. “Yeah, me neither.” He set his teacup on the table before finding his brother’s eyes. “I’m sorry for blaming Korra for why you were upset with me. That wasn’t fair of me.”

            Bolin nodded, finally taking a seat across from his brother. “It’s okay. I mean it’s not and if you ever do it again we can take things outside,” he said, but the edge of his mouth tipped upwards. It was a joke, but the underlying message was still there. “It definitely ticked me off and almost got me in trouble with Korra, but after everything is said and done we’re brothers.”

            Mako nodded. He wanted to ask about Korra, how she was doing and the jealous side of him wanted to ask about the particular details concerning the nature of their relationship. It seemed too quick for her to have already moved onto his brother and while the same could be said about him, Korra was different. It wouldn’t be like her to rush into another relationship so quickly after the disintegration of theirs. He had so many questions, but he pushed them away, instead offering his brother his best wishes and the assurance that his apartment would be in the same condition he had left it in.

            The brothers hugged upon Bolin’s departure, Mako smacking his younger brother on his back before making the earthbender promise to stay out of trouble and stay safe.

            Bolin promised only to stay safe, shooting his brother a cheeky grin as he left.


End file.
